


time heals all wounds

by doyoungley



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Fluff, Happy Ending, Implied Mpreg, Light Angst, M/M, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-02
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-10-05 12:20:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20488787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doyoungley/pseuds/doyoungley
Summary: it's hard to disappear completely off of the radar for 5 years but somehow johnny manages to do just that, leaving behind his devastated boyfriend and their 3 month old son whom he didn't know was even born.





	time heals all wounds

It was on Hendery's 5th birthday when Johnny was reintroduced back into Ten's hectic, messy life.   
Ten told himself that he didn't want him around, he'd survived the first 5 years of the upbringing of their son, he could easily survive another 5, or 10 or even the rest if eternity. Anything that meant Johnny stayed far away from his and Hendery's happy lives but he knew, that if he could he would be running into that man's arms as fast as humanely possible. 

\------------------

"I'm going to the military" 

The words spilled calmly from Johnny's mouth as both him, and his boyfriend of 3 years Ten lay in bed together, cuddling close like they did every night. However Johnny knew that this wasn't going to be like their normal 'every night'. Normally they would cuddle and kiss and maybe make out for a couple of minutes while muttering how they loved each other, before laying back down and looking each other in they eyes and saying that they loved each other again even though both of them knew this information and falling asleep blissfully, smiles etched on their faces, in each other's warmth in their soft squishy bed that Ten always made sure had cute duvet covers on that Johnny usually despised but put up with for Ten. 

"You're what!" 

Ten bolted up into a sitting position next to Johnny, any sleepiness that he was feeling from working a 10 hour shift at the college that he had felt a couple of seconds ago magically seemed it as if it was gone, adrenaline coursed through his now very awake body. 

"I'm going to the military to complete my training with the other alphas earlier, so I can be back before our 30's and we can plan out our lives together. Remember? Our dream house with the white picket fence with 4 little kids running around? I would hate to leave halfway through all of that to go to the military, so I've decided that I'm going now." 

Johnny beamed at Ten as he spoke of their future, the twinkle in his eye gleaming as he imagined their lives 10 years up the track. They'd planned their entire lives out together, their dream home, the amount of kids they wanted. It was going to be perfect, but to Johnny, anything with Ten was perfect, even watching shitty rom coms while eating stale chips together on Ten's ratty old couch. Just as long as they were together, Johnny didn't mind. 

Ten however didn't beam back at his boyfriend, the glow he had in his face while they were cuddling just minutes ago was gone, replaced by a mixture of both fear and sadness. He'd gone pale, his smile was replaced with a frown and the twinkle in his eye had been diminished by the news his boyfriend had just told him. 

"You're leaving me alone-"

Ten's voice cracks slightly, gosh. He hated how sensitive he was when it came to anything surrounding Johnny. It wasn't even like Ten wasn't aware of Johnny's plan to go to the military. He'd caught his boyfriend searching up application forms only a month prior, he knew this was coming, yet here he was holding in his tears in bed at 2am. 

"Only for a little bit baby! I'll be back in 18 months, then we can finally settle down properly and we'll never have to mention the military again, i promise!" 

Johnny was quick to reach out and grab onto his boyfriends shaking hands, holding them softly within his own much larger ones, using his thumb to caress over Ten's smooth skin in an attempt to calm him down. 

"It'll be okay, I promise." 

Ten knew things that Johnny didn't however. Like how he was already 2 months pregnant with their first child, unexpected of course but happily welcomed. A bump was not even recognizable at this stage of the pregnancy. He didn't want to tell Johnny straight way, he planned on surprising him at the 3 months mark with a very elaborate prank he was already planning, guess that idea could be scrapped then. Ten felt like a horrible person for hiding something this big from his boyfriend but he was going to tell him within the next month that he was going to be a father, but telling him now would make him feel guilty for the next 18 months and Ten couldn't live with that, knowing Johnny was thousands of miles away probably crying over him and their child. Ten also knew there was no point in putting up a fight to get his boyfriend to stay with him and their unborn child, he'd already been assigned his position and knew where he would be going to train. There was no backing out, so Ten stayed quiet placing a shaking hand firmly on his stomach, on his child. It was only a year and a half. He'd be back as soon as he was done and they could start their future with their new child. Right? 

"Tennie? Are you okay, you haven't said anything and your shaking?" 

Johnny looked up into Ten's deep brown eyes like he did every night. They were filled with fear, the pupils large and glassed over by the tears threatening to spill from the confines of his eye socket. The fear in Ten's eyes was impossible to read and so Johnny just held him close to his chest and let him cry, the tears streaming down Ten's face began to slowly soak Johnny's own chest, but he didn't mind. He'd do anything for his boyfriend. 

"I'll make sure to message you everyday I can, we can start to plan the new house and everything!" 

Ten pulled back out of Johnny's chest and wiped the tears staining his face with the sleeve of one of Johnny's hoodies he had stolen a few months back. 

"Just, make sure to stay safe" 

Ten whispered out to his boyfriend, his voice was soft and hoarse due to the crying but Johnny still teared up.

"I'll be back here sooner than you even realise, now let's sleep baby, it's getting late

\-----------

Johnny never returned back home. 

Ten and Johnny talked almost every night on the phone about whatever was on their minds and soon hiding the bump became increasingly difficult as the months went on and Ten began to expand like a whale, his stomach was so large that he almost couldn't see his toes. 

Taeyong, Jaehyun, Yuta, Doyoung and the rest of the gang were always there for him though, helping Ten from things such as doing the groceries to simply putting on his shoes when he couldn't reach his feet. Ten had invited Doyoung to move into his and Johnny's shared flat temporarily as he needed help getting things done while being 8 months pregnant. 

Ten also now knew that his and Johnny's first child was to be a boy, something that Johnny had always dreamed of, a son to play sports with in the backyard and to help with their homework after school. 

It was a chilly autumn day in September when Ten went into labour, pain searing through his body as he called out for not Johnny, but Doyoung. Doyoung was there beside him holding his hand as he was whisked away to hospital, the pain becoming to much for Ten who began to start going unconscious as the medicines kicked in to his system to ease the pain. Ten yearned so desperately for Johnny's presence, his voice, his warmth. His dreams as he slept, filled with images and memories of his boyfriend, when they went stargazing together on their first date because Johnny wanted to do something special, or just when they would lie together in silence, enjoying each others presence. Ten just needed Johnny, and it pained him even more to not have him here, holding his hand like he was supposed to do. However, 17 hours of labour pains later, Hendery Seo was born, weighing in at 7"6 with round eyes and a button nose, a perfect baby. 

Ten left hospital 4 days later with his baby in his arms, Doyoung in tow holding everything they took with them. He had made sure to message Johnny to make sure he didn't get worried or suspicious that something had happened. But his heart broke looking down at his brand new baby cradled him his arms, nestled against his chest. He wanted nothing more than to just tell his boyfriend every single beautiful detail of their first child, like how he smelt amazing and how his eyes look like Ten's bit his smile like Johnny's. But he couldn't bring himself to do it, he couldn't bring that guilt upon Johnny halfway through his military training and besides, Johnny's replies back to Ten's texts had begun to dwindle. 

It was Hendery's first Christmas, as well as the time when Johnny was meant to come home for a mandatory Christmas break. Ten was going to do it, he was going to introduce Johnny to his son, his perfect angel of a son whom he didn't even know existed yet. 

Hendery never whined, or groaned and he only ever cried when he was extremely hungry. He looked much like Ten, wide almond eyes that twinkled as he looked up at his father when he was being gently rocked to sleep in the early hours of the morning. 

Ten, with Hendery in his arms, swaddled in a blanket, waited patiently on the rocking chair in their apartment on Christmas day. Johnny would be home in any minute. 

But he never arrived. There was never any knock on the door, or ringing of the bell. 

"Maybe he's just running late, he messaged him yesterday saying he'd be home tomorrow" 

However soon Ten found out his text messages and calls hadn't been going through either.   
Panic set in. His boyfriend and father of his 3 month old child was missing, awol. His phone had been disconnected or was completely dead and he never turned up at his house like he had said. 

Turns out he wasn't at the military camp either and so a full scale search began on the military and Ten's behalf, but after 5 days of intense searching throughout South Korea and even abroad, with no leads coming back, the search was called off. 

Ten hadn't cried like that ever, the tears seemed they would never stop. Doyoung took Hendery to his own house that he shared with his husband Yuta for the next few weeks as Ten grieved alone him his apartment. He looked through photo albums of them together, memorized Johnny's laugh and face to memory, so that as he slept Johnny would come to him and they would live just like they used too. But Ten had to face the facts eventually. 

His boyfriend was probably dead, or had fled the country and now he was alone with their child, who now officially had one dad. 

It hurt.

\-----------

It had been 5 years since Johnny went missing and slowly Ten had learnt to push any memory of Johnny to the back of his mind so he could focus on bringing up their child but sometimes it was hard when a little piece of Johnny was what he was bringing up.

It was Hendery's fifth birthday party today, five years had gone by since that chilly autumn day when Ten gave birth without Johnny by his side. Ten and Hendery's flat was covered in rainbow streamers and helium balloons floated weightlessly in the air of their living room, occasionally being tugged by some passing children. 

Ten had allowed Hendery to invite over as many of his friends as he wanted to, since it was his fifth birthday and all. So his flat was now filled with 12 small boys and girls giggling and running around with their abundance of energy all while Ten and the six of his friends he was able to round up chased after them, making sure they didn't break anything. 

"Ten's papa!" 

One of the small kids he instantly recognized to be Xuxi, the bubbly wide eyed boy with the incredible energy that Hendery was very close friends with. 

"Yes Xuxi"

"Where is Hendery's other appa?"

He knew the question was meant to be innocent, but with the fifth anniversary of his sudden disappearance around the corner, Ten could feel the tears begin to well at the bottom of his eyes.

"He's just... away at the moment" 

"So will we ever get to see him?"

Ten smiled down sweetly at the small boy standing in front of him and ruffled up his hair a little before laughing.

"Maybe one day"

Ten was able to lie straight through his teeth to Xuxi before excusing himself down the hall to his bedroom, leaving Doyoung, Yuta, WinWin, Kun, Taeyong and Jaehyun in charge of the 12 energy balls in the house. 

Once the tears started they never really stopped, he hadn'thad a cry over Johnny in a long time. He pulled out a box from underneath his bed and started to pull things out, the first item being a photo album he put together in his free time while pregnant with Hendery, awaiting Johnny's return and Hendery's birth. He softly stroked the photos, relishing in the happy memories of his boyfriend. They had planned on getting married when Johnny got back. Ten didn't know how Johnny was going to propose, but he knew that it was going to happen. Johnny always nagged on at Ten about how his proposal is going to be the best and that he should brace himself now because it was going to blow his mind. Not so deep down, Ten still wanted to get married to Johnny, to spend a lifetime with him, but he knew it would never happen so he closed the photo album and placed the box back under the bed, trying to stop himself from going insane. 

When he arrived back into the living room all of the boys had begun playing pass the parcel, WinWin in the corner of the room controlling music as the five others helped the boys keep the parcel circulating around the poorly shaped circle. Themusic stopped on Jaemin just as Ten arrived and he watched on with a small smile on his face as the little boy excitedly ripped open the wrapping to reveal the small toys hidden within. It continued like this for a while before the doorbell rung and Ten shot up from the couch as the boys continued playing since the bell was barely audible above the music. 

"That must be someones parent, they're a bit early to pick their kid up I suppose" 

Ten speaks out to Taeyong as he looks down at the time on his phone but shrugs anyway and goes to greet the parent at the door, quickly checking he didn't look to much of a mess in one of the mirror as he walked to the front entrance. He didn't even have time to register what parent had arrived after he'd opened the door before a pair of arms were wrapped around him and he was pulled into a hug. The person hugging him was crying, sobbing was more accurate their entire frame was shaking with sobs and hiccups. 

"Um, excuse me, why are you hugging me?"   
Ten wiggled his way out of the embrace to look at however was at his doorstep sobbing and hugging him on his sons birthday. 

The eyes were unforgettable, so were the lips, and smile.  
Johnny Seo. 

"No way. There's no way I'm awake right now"  
Ten laughed as he looked up at Johnny who was standing in front of him, face still stained with tears and his eyes were red rimmed with a confused look on his face. 

"This has to be a dream. This is what I get for looking through that photo album isn't it, I get sad Johnny dreams. Nice try brain but you ain't fooling me"   
Ten laughed, almost insanely as he walked back into his home, shutting the door. But as he walked back to the party it slowly sank in that Ten was not dreaming. The kids in the living room across the flat were still shouting while playing pass the parcel, the clock on the wall was still ticking on and his shirt was still soaked slightly with tears that weren't his. 

This was real. This was all real. 

Reality hit Ten like a brick to the face. He fell to his knees, straight to the floor of their dining room, the cold hard wood floors now had a small trembling Thai man kneeling on them. His boyfriend of 8 years, the father of his child, the love of his life was currently standing outside his door for the first time in 5 years. He didn't know what to do. He'd been hoping, praying that this day would come for 5 years now but now that it was here Ten was clueless on what to do. Slowly, Ten got up. His heart was hammering in his chest. He had to keep his guards up, for Hendery's sake. He couldn't have this man come waltzing back into his life just to leave again for another 5 years. 

However, as soon as he reopened the front door and saw Johnny, his Johnny Seo standing there, tears falling down his cheeks at a steady rate, his guard dropped instantly. 

"Ten"

"What are you doing here?" 

"Ten please"

"Johnny-"

Just the sound of his name being said by his boyfriend made Johnny break once more. It'd been 5 years since he'd been allowed anywhere near this place. 

"Johnny- why are you here? Where did you go? Why did you go?" 

Ten's voice was small, the front door being closed behind him as he began to talk. It was understandable, Johnny understood why he was being asked all of these, he left his boyfriend for 5 years without ever contacting him. But he could explain, he knew he could. 

"Ten, I love you"

He couldn't help himself, all of the pent out anger he had toward himself these last 5 years for not being there to say the three words to Ten's face finally felt lessened. He looked back eagerly at his boyfriend, he so desperately wanted Ten to say them back, for them to get back together, start that family they always wanted with the love of his life. He was finally free to do as he wished. 

"Johnny, I-. Someone else has claimed my heart over the last 5 years" 

Johnny soon was breaking down for the 3rd time in the last 10 or so minutes. It was to good to be true. Of course Ten wouldn't be single anymore, he'd left him all alone for five whole years with no explanation as to why. Why would anyone stay with someone like that. Johnny knew Ten deserved better than himself, of course he did. Johnny couldn't be mad, he didnt have the right to be mad and so, he cried over his loss. 

"It's his birthday today. We're having a party right now, all of his friends are over" 

Ten's voice was cracking as he talked to Johnny, who was still sobbing, about their son. Ten was crying just as hard as Johnny was now, all he wanted to do right now was to fall into Johnny's embrace and never leave but he had to tell him, it was excruciating keeping it in for any longer, it had been 5 whole years.   
Johnny however was now getting confused, why was Ten crying about how his new boyfriend is having a party? 

"He's turning five years old. His name is Hendery Seo, he weighed 7"6 and was born on the chilly autumn day of September 28th. He was a perfect baby, he never cried or whined-"

Ten's voice faded toward the end, he was crying to much to even talk, to even tell his missing boyfriend that he was a father. Johnny stopped crying, the hiccups also stopped and he cupped Ten's face with his massive hands and lifted it up to met his red rimmed glassy eyes.

"Seo?"

"Seo."

They stare at each other for a while, both with tear strained cheeks. Johnny was a dad, a father. He had been a father for 5 years and never knew. He felt like passing out, he felt sick. He had been so absent in his own sons life, he almost felt like running. He didn't know where but he wanted to leave so badly, but he didn't. He couldn't. Ten's grip on his wrist was so tight he had no other choice than to stay and so he confronted Ten. 

"You were pregnant-"

"Yes but let me explain-"

"You were pregnant before I left for the military and you didn't even think to tell me before I left!" 

Johnny was upset, his voice began to raise and by the end of his sentence he was yelling at a Ten who had backed backward toward the door again. 

"I didn't tell you because there was no point, I didn't want you to have the guilt of knowing I was back home with a baby while you were away and so I kept it a secret. I planned on surprising you with a gender reveal prank but obviously I scrapped that idea when you told me you enlisted. By the time you'd even told me you were leaving I was already 2 months. We both waited for you, that Christmas 5 years ago, when you never showed up. I sat in the rocking chair for the entire day, holding our son, in hopes that maybe you'd turn up like you said you would! I kept it a secret because I thought you were coming back dumbass!" 

Ten had begun to shout too, he was still surprised that he still had tears to shed after the amount he'd already cried that day. 

"They sent me on a secret mission, I was in North Korea as a spy, they couldn't tell anyone about it, not even you! They shipped me there secretly to make sure no one ever realised. You don't realise how much it hurt to know I was leaving you at home. But you can't fight government orders, so I was sent" 

"Johnny Seo, I love you so much" 

Ten, even though every bone in his body was telling him not to, basically sprinted forward into Johnny, letting his arms wrap around his waist as they sunk slowly to the patio deck, crying and hugging.

They sat there for a while, on the patio floor. They didn't talk, they didn't have to. They just sat in each others presence and basked in some of the fleeting autumn sun. It was everything Ten had been dreaming for, for five years straight but he also had other pressing matters to attend. 

"We need to have a very long chat tonight, but for now, can we go and check on our sons birthday party?" 

\-------------

Johnny stayed over that night. 

"Wanna look at his baby photos?" 

Ten asked as they cuddled in their bed, the warm light from Ten's lamp illuminating the small room. 

"Of course" 

Johnny bolted up out of his comfortable position in the bed cuddling Ten and looked over at his now fiancé. He proposed that night with a lolly ring that he'd stolen from one of the drawers of the kitchen where some poor kid had obviously tried to hide it from the other kids who were trying to steal it from him. Ten had obviously said yes, but his only requirement was a better ring when they could get round to it. 

They hadn't explained to Hendery what was happening, not yet. Maybe tomorrow, when they're less emotional, although Ten doubts they, more specifically, he, will never stop being emotional over this. 

Ten smiles at the enthusiasm Johnny shows toward the thought of pictures and so he leans down and grabs a blue box from under the bed, which happened to be filled with every part of Hendery's childhood that he had created just incase Johnny ever did come home. 

"This was him when he was born" 

Ten pointed to a picture of a small baby being cradled in a very tired looking Ten's arms.

"And then this is him at 1 month, 2 months, 3 months and so on" 

He handed the album to Johnny who flicked through the pages, examining each picture of his son. 

"You've raised him well tennie" 

Johnny whispers out and wipes a tear from his eye. Looking over at his fiancé he notices he's crying too, tears slowly trickle down his face as he watches the father to his son finally get to see him, finally get to see his beautiful, perfect son. 

"Lets sleep now Tennie. It's getting late and its been a long, very emotional day and we both know tomorrow is going to be even more emotional, so lets sleep." 

Johnny was right, so Ten shuffled back down to the bed and leaned over so his arms were firmly wrapped around Johnny's torso. 

Johnny turned off the light and waited till he heard soft snores come from his future husband before turning around and facing him. 

His soft features hadn't really change much over the years, but here they were, 8 years after they started dating, engaged and with a son. Things can only go up from here. 

\-------------

"Yah, Hendery Seo! Why are your dirty clothes in the washing machine with Chenle's white school shirts!"

Ten shouted up the staircase to his eldest son, who had turned 18 just a week prior. He was heading off to University soon, the thought alone made Ten tear up. 

"Mustn't have seen them in there, sorry" 

Ten just smiles and gives his son a hug. Hendery, unlike most 18 year old boys thoroughly enjoys his dad's hugs and relishes in the warmth and love it provides him with. 

"Yeri, Chenle, Hendery, Mark! It's dinner time!" 

Hendery and Ten's hug is rudely interrupted by Johnny, who's obviously just finished cooking dinner for the night for their family of 6.

"Coming Papa!" 

Yeri's sweet voice echoed down the hallway as she ran down the steps, clutching tightly onto her cat stuffed toy she had received from Taeyong and Jaehyun when she was born. 

Dinnertime was Ten's favourite time of the day, when all of his kids and his husband would sit down together and eat and discuss how their days went. Yeri was at the end of primary school, turning 12 earlier that year. Mark was a year younger, and had only turned 11 a month prior and Chenle, Ten's baby was turning 8 in a couple months. 

His kids were perfect, each of them the apple of both Ten and Johnny's eyes.

After Johnny came back, he and Hendery slowly became close and after a year, Hendery began to refer to Johnny as appa, which when it first happened made Johnny cry so hard he became close to dehydrated from the loss of water from his body. As for Ten and Johnny, their relationship only strengthened as they grew older. They built and moved into that dream home they were always planning back before Hendery was born, and then had three more kids, leaving them with a total of 4. Three boys and one girl, Johnny's dream. 

Johnny eventually properly proposed to Ten, using a proper, very fancy ring that is one of Ten's most valuable items that fits snuggly on his finger. The wedding was also just like they planned, casual and kid friendly, Hendery being the ring bearer of course. At Yeri's gender reveal, 2 and a half years after Johnny had returned and 7 years after Hendery's birth Ten was able to prank Johnny just like he wanted to with Hendery's birth announcement, cream pie to the face.

In the end, it all worked out just like they'd planned, even if there were a few bumps in the road.


End file.
